Forming in late-'60s Chicago, the Flock forever languished in the shadow of the Chicago Transit
Authority (later famous as just plain Chicago), whose peculiar approach to art rock, incorporating horns and other unorthodox instrumentation into rock and jazz forms, they also pursued. But though they clearly lacked Chicago's smash-hit-penning abilities, the Flock possessed a secret weapon in masterful violinist Jerry Goodman, and their genre-smashing compositions were often even more extreme, if not exactly Top 40 material.
Rick Canoff (vocals, saxophone) and Fred Glickstein (vocals, guitar, organ) were already performing in
a garage band called the Exclusives in 1965 when they decided to rename themselves the Flock. The duo recorded a number of independent singles with various backing musicians over the next few years, but it wasn't until they discovered that their guitar tech, one Jerry Goodman, also happened to be a virtuoso violinist and invited him into the fold that the Flock's sound truly began to take shape.
By 1969, the septet was completed by Jerry Smith (bass), Ron Karpman (drums), John Gerber (sax, flute, banjo), and Tom Webb (sax, flute), and had scored a deal with Columbia Records, for whom they
recorded their groundbreaking eponymous debut that same year. But, not even enthusiastic endorsements from some of the era's most respected musicians (including English blues legend John Mayall, who famously dubbed them the "best American band" he'd heard and wrote the album's liner notes) could help sell the Flock's complicated music, which simply proved too unusual and inaccessible for most consumers.
The band continued to plug along on the live circuit, including a stint at the prestigious 1970 Bath
Festival (where they performed before a then-skyrocketing Led Zeppelin), but their label, Columbia, was already beginning to lose faith. Complicating matters further, 1971's Dinosaur Swamps proved a disappointing second effort, falling well short of its predecessor's inspirational flights; it is perhaps best-remembered for its beautiful cover artwork, rather than the songs contained within.
A third LP, reportedly to be called "Flock Rock," was summarily shelved uncompleted, and the Flock
had fallen apart by 1972. Violinist Goodman later worked with the Mahavishnu Orchestra and Dixie Dregs, among others, but except for a brief, disastrous reunion which yielded 1975's ill-received Inside Out album, the remaining members of the Flock soon faded into rock & roll obscurity.
Artist Biography by Eduardo Rivadavia
THE FLOCK - THE FLOCK 1969
The first thing you hear is an electric guitar, but listeners are quickly exposed to the band's secret weapon, the violin of Jerry Goodman. The instrumental opening track lays out the group's bold fusion
of classical and rock. Subsequent tracks, including the Ray Davies chestnut "Tired of Waiting," add jazz to the mix with an unconventional horn section of two tenor saxes and a trumpet. Veteran English bluesman John Mayall raves about the Chicago septet in the liner notes. Like the Blind Faith album, this powerful debut is undercut by a too-long jam at the end.
By Mark Allan
TRACKS
01. Introduction 04:53.
02. Clown 07:45
03. I Am the Tall Tree 05:34
04. Tired of Waiting 04:39
05. Store Bought - Store Thought 07:00
06. Truth 15:24
07. What Would You Do If the Sun Died? 02:48
08. Lollipops And Rainbows 04:05
09. Tired of Waiting (Single Version) 02:42]
10. Store Bought - Store Thought (Single Version) 02:44
11. Clown (Part One) 03:12
12. Clown (Part Two) 04:38
MP3 @ 320 Size: 153 MB
Flac Size: 392 MB
THE FLOCK - DINOSAUR SWAMPS 1970
This album is a fine follow-up to their first. If you want to feel what and where music was for many in 1970, give this album a listen. Pretty good. Pretty pretty good.
TRACKS
02. Big Bird 05:50
03. Hornschmeyer's Island 07:25
04. Lighthouse 05:18
05. Crabfoot 08:14
06. Mermaid 04:53
07. Uranian Sircus 07:13
08. Chanja 02:38
09. Atlantians Truckin’ Home 04:50
10. Afrika 04:34
11. Just Do It 06:35
12. Mermaid (Single Version) 02:49
13. Crabfoot (Single Version) 02:49
MP3 @ 320 Size: 153 MB
Flac Size: 417 MB